‘A lop-sided emergency brake compromise': Why EU-US trade deal isn't being universally celebrated in NI and beyond
The EU-US 15% tariff deal may well have averted a trade war, but that doesn't mean it's been greeted enthusiastically in Northern Ireland, the Republic – or indeed, anywhere in Europe.
The accord, announced on Sunday by US President Donald Trump and European Commission president Ursula von der Leyen, applies a tariff of 15% to EU imports into the US – an improvement on a threatened rate of 30%.
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Metro
12 minutes ago
- Metro
UK and France's migrant deal comes into force - here's what it means
A deal to return migrants who arrived in the UK illegally in small boats back across the Channel to France is coming into force today. The 'one in, one out' agreement was announced during a state visit from French President Emmanuel Macron last month, as a new means of deterring people from taking the hazardous journey over the water. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer said at the time it would begin 'within weeks' – and today is the first day it is fully in effect, after it gained the blessing of the European Commission and other EU countries. However, no returns will be made straight away. Instead, detentions are expected the start within the next few days in preparation for the next step. By the end of July, more than 25,000 people had made the crossing over the English Channel in flimsy small boats. That's almost 50% more than the number who had crossed by the same time last year. Craig Munro breaks down Westminster chaos into easy to follow insight, walking you through what the latest policies mean to you. Sent every Wednesday. Sign up here. The government hopes the risk of being sent straight back across to continental Europe will put people off risking their lives to reach the UK. The logic behind the deal is simple – adult migrants who arrive here illegally will be sent back across the Channel, and for every person returned, the UK will take in an asylum seeker from Europe. Those asylum seekers must not have attempted to come over illegally, and will be subject to security and eligibility checks. To view this video please enable JavaScript, and consider upgrading to a web browser that supports HTML5 video It doesn't take a degree in maths to realise this would result in the same number of people coming over to the UK, on the face of it. But the Home Office believes fewer people will make the journey if they think they might not end up being able to stay, and this will end up bringing down the numbers. That could depend on how many people are impacted, though, as not every arrival will be sent back immediately. Reports suggest the initial phase of the scheme could return 50 people each week – meaning just one in 17 would be affected, at the current rate of crossings. The question of whether would-be migrants might think those figures are worth the gamble remains. Government figures on both sides of the Channel are, unsurprisingly, keen to sing the praises of the new agreement. Starmer said it was the 'product of months of grown-up diplomacy', and would 'strike at the heart of these vile gangs' business model'. The PM added: 'The days of gimmicks and broken promises are over – we will restore order to our borders with the seriousness and competence the British people deserve.' Home Secretary Yvette Cooper said the UK would 'always be ready to play its part alongside other countries in helping those fleeing persecution and conflict', but it must be done 'in a controlled and managed legal way'. Her French counterpart Bruno Retailleau wrote in a post on X that the agreement is 'a first step in addressing a challenge that calls for the mobilization of the entire European Union'. Opposition politicians, on the other hand, have been scathing. Shadow Home Secretary Chris Philp argued: 'Returning just 50 illegal immigrants a week, and probably less, will make no difference whatsoever. This amounts to just 6 per cent of illegal arrivals. 'Allowing 94 per cent to stay in the UK will be no deterrent at all. This is a gimmick which won't work.' Charity Freedom from Torture has also raised reservations over the plan, which will result in the detention of arrivals. Natasha Tsangarides, the group's Associate Director of Advocacy, said: 'We know from our therapy rooms how profoundly harmful any time in detention is for people who've been through the unimaginable horrors of torture. 'Many survivors were tortured in detention, so locking them up again reopens deep psychological scars and can set them back significantly on their road to recovery.' The deal with France is a central pillar of a wider government effort to 'smash the gangs' who are behind the small boats. More Trending In the past couple of days, the Home Office has also revealed a £100 million boost in funding for border security specifically to tackle small boats crossings. At the weekend, the creation of a new offence was announced targeting people who promote the crossings on social media. They now face up to five years in prison. When Germany's Chancellor Friedrich Merz visited the UK the week after Macron, he committed to a change in German law aiming to prevent people in the country facilitating illegal migration to the UK. According to statistics from the Home Office, 898 migrants arrived on 13 boats on July 30, but none at all arrived in the four days afterwards. Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at webnews@ For more stories like this, check our news page. MORE: Truth revealed about why farmers sprayed manure on 'illegal campers' MORE: 'I create fake IDs of your MP so you can get round Online Safety Act' MORE: Risk and reward, Trump's Mini-Me and planting trees for the planet
The Independent
12 minutes ago
- The Independent
Trump swears he's hearing ‘great reviews' after White House Rose Garden leveled
President Donald Trump has insisted he is hearing 'great reviews' for his makeover of the White House Rose Garden, which has seen its famous manicured lawn paved over to make way for a stone patio. 'We're getting great reviews of the Rose Garden, and we had to do it,' the president told reporters on Sunday as he returned to Washington, D.C. 'When we had a press conference, you'd sink into the mud. It was grass and it was very wet, always wet and damp and wet and if it rained it would take three, four, five days to dry out and we couldn't use it really for the intended purpose. 'It's a beautiful white stone and it's a stone that's the same color as the White House itself. And because it's very white, it's going to reflect the heat and it's not going to be very hot. Yeah, we've got great reviews of the Rose Garden.' The president's assessment does not match that of social media users, who complained over the weekend that he had turned a cherished piece of American history into a 'parking lot' and a 'concrete jungle' that looks 'devoid of life.' The garden was first opened in 1913, was planted up with roses by then-first lady Jackie Kennedy in the early 1960s and has hosted receptions for visiting dignitaries for decades, also serving as a venue for annual ceremonies like the Thanksgiving turkey pardon and occasional policy announcements, most recently Trump's swiftly-reversed 'Liberation Day' tariff unveiling in April. The redesign leaves its signature rose bushes pushed to the periphery to accommodate a design much closer to the president's Mar-a-Lago home in Palm Beach, Florida. The cost of the 'upgrade' has not been released although it is known that the work was paid for by the Trust for the National Mall, a nonpartisan nonprofit that has raised $75m in private funding for D.C. restoration projects since 2007. The president has enjoyed imposing his idiosyncratic taste on 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue since returning to office and last week announced the construction of a new $200m ballroom. He has already had the Oval Office redecorated, wasting no time in switching the pictures, busts and ornaments around and introducing as much gold as possible. As CNN noted earlier this year: 'There is gold everywhere: new gold vermeil figurines on the mantle and medallions on the fireplace, gold eagles on the side tables, gilded Rococo mirrors on the doors, and, nestled in the pediments above the doorways, diminutive gold cherubs shipped in from Mar-a-Lago.' Trump also tripled the number of pictures of his predecessors on the walls, adding portraits of George Washington, Abraham Lincoln, Franklin D Roosevelt, Thomas Jefferson and Ronald Reagan, amongst others. He further reinstated his signature Diet Coke button on the Resolute Desk and a bust of Sir Winston Churchill last seen during his first term.
Reuters
12 minutes ago
- Reuters
Pfizer raises annual profit forecast
Aug 5 (Reuters) - U.S. drugmaker Pfizer (PFE.N), opens new tab raised its full-year profit forecast on Tuesday after reporting better-than-expected results for the second quarter, boosted by strong demand for its heart disease drug, Vyndaqel, and blood thinner, Eliquis. The drugmaker now expects to earn $2.90 to $3.10 per share on an adjusted basis in 2025, compared with its previous expectations of $2.80 to $3.00 per share. Shares of the drugmaker rose 2.4% in premarket hours. Pfizer said the new forecast includes an impact of 20 cents per share related to its recent licensing deal with China's 3SBio ( opens new tab for experimental cancer treatment. Pfizer's results come at a time when the pharmaceutical industry is under pressure from President Donald Trump's administration to lower drug prices and is gearing up for 15% tariffs on imports from the European Union. The drugmaker has said it had enough manufacturing capacity across its 10 sites in the United States to mitigate any impact from tariffs and is open to shifting some production to these existing facilities. Investors are also closely monitoring potential disruptions to Pfizer and other companies' vaccine portfolio from policy changes under RFK Jr., a known vaccine skeptic. Vaccines account for about 20% of Pfizer's revenues. On an adjusted basis, Pfizer earned 78 cents per share in the second quarter, compared with analysts' expectations of 58 cents per share, according to LSEG data.
